FORMATION OF MULTICELLULAR AGGREGATES UNDER DIFFERENT CONDITIONS OF MICROENVIRONMENT Multicellular

УДК 616–006.04:618.19:615.373
L. GARMANCHOUK 1
, O. PEREPELYTSINA 1
,
M. SYDORENKO 1
, L.I. OSTAPCHENKO 2
1
Department of biotechnical problems of diagnostics Institute problems
of cryobiology and criomedicine NAN Ukraine, Kyiv
E mail: olenaquail@rambler.ru
2
Taras Shevchenko Kyiv National University
FORMATION OF MULTICELLULAR
AGGREGATES UNDER DIFFERENT
CONDITIONS
OF MICROENVIRONMENT
Multicellular aggregates (spheroids) represent an inter
mittent level between monolayer growing cells and tissue cul
ture. Spheroids are rather objective model of the three dimen
sional growth and organization, the cell to cell interactions
and influence of microenvironmental conditions on tumour
microaggregates. In our work formation and growth of sphe
roids depends on concentration of CMC and FCS. Conditions
of microenvironment influence on intensiveness of prolifera
tion as well as on cells adhesiveness and formation of microag
gregates.
Introduction.During the last three decades mul
ticellular spheroids of both normal and malignant
cells have been used as model systems for studying
three dimensional growth and differentiation in
vitro. Spheroids can maintain several biochemical
and morphological features similar to the corre
sponding tissues in vivo. Complex cell to cell inter
actions in microenvironments that simulate inter
vascular microregions in vivo can be studied with
help of spheroid system under controlled condi
tion in vitro.
During development, as well as in the differen
tiated organism, cell behaviour and histotypic
integrity is determined to great extent by impulses
presented to the cell membrane from the surround
ing environment which consists of contiguous
cells, endocrine substances, extra cellular matrix.
This three dimensional cell arrangement is also
important in malignant tumours where irregular
distribution of oxygen and nutrients is reflected by
cellular complexity observed in neoplastic tissues.
Therefore, tumour micro region is cellular sub
population which consists of proliferating, quies
cent, and necrotic cells that differ in their sensitivi
ty to anticancer therapy [1]. In the spheroid model
cell proliferation and apoptosis take place, and
detachment of cells from the spheroid surface (cell
shedding) is also observed. Cells allocated between
the proliferative outer layer and the inner necrotic
layer of the spheroid moved to either of the two
compartments. The non dividing but viable cells
located at a distance from the capillaries may rep
resent a particular therapeutic problem, since drug
penetration here may be insufficient and since
non dividing cells are generally more resistant to
drugs and irradiation than proliferating cells.
In spheroids cells are organized in a three
dimensional network displaying cell to cell and
cell to matrix contacts [2, 3]. In contrast to the
limited morphological and functional differentia
tion of the cells grown in monolayer cultures, the
three dimensional spheroid culture systems allow
cells to grow and to develop very similar in many
aspects to situation in vivo. Cells obtain significant
information from cell to cell contacts and cell
recognition and adhesion constitute important
mechanisms of tissue growth and differentiation in
vivo. Additionally, the interactions with the extra
cellular matrix and humoral factors provide infor
mation required for cellular development and
function. Spheroids are therefore composed of
heterogeneous groups consisting of proliferating,
ІSSN 0564–3783. Цитология и генетика. 2010. № 1 25
© L. GARMANCHOUK, O. PEREPELYTSINA,
M. SYDORENKO, L.I. OSTAPCHENKO, 2010

quiescent, and necrotic cells and, as such, repre
sent in vitro model for studies of the biology of nor
mal as well as malignant cells [1, 4].
The establishment of spheroids from a single
cells suspension depends upon diverse cellular
properties, such as cell adhesion molecules, cell
matrix interactions, cell surface changes, and the
formation of junctional complex. In general, the
ability to form spheroids is a characteristic trait of
malignant cells derived from solid tumours,
although cells from normal tissues may also form
spheroids and differentiate in vitro. In this review
we survey the adapted methods for generation,
culturing and visualization multicellular tumour
spheroids.
Spheroid formation in spinner flasks. Cell culture
in spinner flasks has been the most widely used
method for culturing spheroids, originally intro
duced by Moscona. The main advantage of this
method is that a very large number of spheroids
may be generated in large volume cultures, the
spheroids reaching a considerable size (diameter
1–2 mm), due to continuous vortex that enhances
the oxygen tension in the medium. Monolayer cell
culture is tripsinized and seeded in growth medi
um in 250 ml siliconized glass spinner flasks.
Rotation (180 rpm) is obtained by placing the
spinner flasks containing a stir bar on a magnetic
stirrer inside an incubator. Culture medium has
changed twice a week. In such culture spheroid
can be cultivated during 1–3 weeks [5].
Spheroid formation on agar overlay. Growth of
spheroids in medium agar overlay culture was
first described by Yuhas. For agar medium pre
paring – 1 g agar noble is dissolved in 26.6 ml of
distilled water, boiled thoroughly over an open
flame until the agar is melted, and then allowed to
cool during a brief period. 20 ml of liquid agar
solution is mixed with 80 ml warm (37°С) culture
medium by gentle shaking. The medium agar is
transferred to the culture vessels under 40°С. The
agar will solidify in about 5 min at room tempera
ture, and the vessels can be stored at 4°С for 1 to
2 weeks [5].
The main problem in spheroid culturing is
standardization in a size, number of cells in one
aggregate and growth kinetic of cell population. In
our investigation we have changed conditions of
culture (percent of FCS, CMC and time) for gen
eration of standard spheroids.
Materials and methods. Adhesion line of Human
Caucasian of breast adenocarcinoma (MCF 7)
was used as experimental model of tumour micro
aggregates. The line was established from the pleu
ral effusion from a 69 years old Caucasian woman
suffering from a breast adenocarcinoma. Cells were
epithelial like and exhibited some features of dif
ferentiated mammary epithelium including oestra
diol synthesis and formation of domes. Cells can
carry B or C type retrovirus and are considered to
represent a category 2 pathogen (P2 containment).
Cells express the wild type and variant oestrogen
receptors as well as progesterone receptor.
The cells were handled in standard tissue cul
ture conditions (100 % humidity, 5 % CO2 in air;
37 °С) under laboratory containment level 2.
For generation of spheroids we adapted the
methods of Yuhas and Kelm [6, 7]. Cell confluent
was trypsinized and single cell and suspension
were seeded on low adhesive substrate at a density
5.0 · 104
cells/ml in the medium with 0.24 % of
carboxy methyl cellulose (CMC). We generated
spheroids in 6 well plates and Petry’s dishes.
Dishes with cells were placed on shaker with low
rotation (150 rpm) for one hour. Spheroid forma
tion depends on the type of the cells used, cell den
sity at seeding, the speed of rotation, the type of
culture medium, concentration of the FTS and the
incubation time [8]. Spheroids were transferred to
new flasks and separated by size with gentle
replacement of spheroid containing medium in
conical tubes. When the tubes were placed verti
cally, the spheroids were rapidly sunk to the bot
tom, leaving single cells and debris in the super
natant which was removed. New portion of growth
medium was then added to the tubes and the whole
sample was transferred to new dishes.
For counting of proliferation and number of
dead cells in spheroids cell suspension was trans
ferred to the tubes and centrifuged under 200 g
2–3 min for separating single cells and aggregates.
Supernatant was removed, the aggregates were
resuspended and the quantity of live/dead cells in
the aliquot of suspension was calculated. Cell pro
liferation in spheroids was measured regularly
every 4–8–16–24–32–48 hours.
Light microscopic observations was made in fixed
by ethanol : formalin (1 : 9) cell samples. Cells
were stained with hematoxylin using the standard
methods [9].
ISSN 0564–3783. Цитология и генетика. 2010. № 126
L. Garmanchouk, O. Perepelytsina, M. Sydorenko, L.I. Ostapchenko

Staining by MTT was used to study cell prolif
eration by colorimetric assay [10] in culture with
different concentrations of FTS. Cells were cul
tured in the standard conditions with 0,5 mg/ml of
3 [4,5 dimetltiazol 2] 2,5 dipheniltetratetrazoli
um (MTT) during 4 hours. Mitochondrial dehy
drogenases of viable cells cleave the tetrazolium
ring, yielding purple MTT formazan crystals
which are insoluble in aqueous solutions. The
resulting purple solution was spectrophotometri
cally measured. An increase in cell number results
in an increase in the amount of MTT formazan
formed and in an increase in absorbance. Crystals
of formasan form sharp needles after incorporating
in cells (Fig. 1). Formasan crystals were incorpo
rated in alive cells, after that the samples were cen
trifuged under 1500 g during 5 min. For develop
ment of staining100 μl of DMSO («Sigma») and
25 μl of glycine («Sigma») were added in all wells.
Optical absorption was detected using multi well
spectroscopy reader Multyscan («Labsystem»,
Finland) (OP540 nm).
Results. We generated spheroids using 0.24 %
of carboxy methyl cellulose (CMC). CMC has
high viscosity, is not toxic and stimulates forma
tion of cell microaggregates to prevent adhesion of
cells to the bottom and to each other. On Fig. 2 we
fixed MCF 7 culture at the same stages (24 hours)
with CMC (b) and without (a).
For comparing influence of FCS concentration
on growth of MTS we hold tumor microaggregates
in 0, 2, 5, 10 % of FCS. As we can see from the Fig.
3 growth of spheroids has an exponent kinetics in
concentrations of Fetal Calf Serum (FCS) from
0 to 10 %. In 24 well test plates in experiments
aggregates, single cells in suspension, adhesive
cells on the bottom of wells were calculated. After
two hours of shaking number of spheroids in field
of view was different in different concentration of
FCS (2 % – 2 0.3, 5 % – 4 0.7, 10 % – 6 0.5).
Interesting that we observed increasing quanti
ty of MTS in field of view during first 8 hours with
out FCS. After that numbers of microaggregates
decreased (p < 0.05) and didn’t had exponent
characteristics (Fig 3). At the same time, under
other concentrations of FCS spheroids growth
achieved his maximum in different time period:
the lower concentration of FCS, the earlier growth
maximum is detected. For 2 % it was after 16
hours, for 5 and 10 % after 48 hours after the start
of incubation. Intensiveness of proliferation had
proportional dependence from increasing concen
tration of FCS from 0 to 10 % and was higher in
Formation of multicellular aggregates under different conditions of microenvironment
Fig. 1. MTS in 10 % (a) and 2 % (b) of FCS (accordingly)
in 48 hour culture after coincubation with MTT
Fig. 2. Monolayer (a) and spheroid (b) culture, 24 hours
Fig. 3. Dependence of cell proliferation on concentration
of FCS
Fig. 4. MTS in 2 % FCS culture 48 hour

culture with 10 % of FCS. However, number of
MTS decreased from 0 to 10 % of FCS despite cell
proliferation took place. Obviously, number of
cells included not only aggregated cells but single
cells too. Since at the start of experiment we sepa
rated MTS for incubation, we can conclude that
lack of the FCS decreased adhesive characteristics
of cells and led to disintegration of MTS. More
than that, in different concentrations of FCS sizes
of MTS were different (Fig. 1 and 4). In 10 % of
FCS cell aggregates were bigger (650–750 μm in
diameter) than in 2 % culture (250–350 μm in
diameter). In 5 % percent of FCS MTS were
smaller but had low dispersion in sizes (near 460
μm in diameter). In addition – in 10 % FCS cul
ture MTS had sphere form and in 2 % FCS –
ellipsoid (Fig. 5).
Number and quality of tumour microaggre
gates were determined by viability cells in culture
in different conditions of culturing. That’s why we
counted alive/died cells in every well for all time
points. As a result, we determined that number and
percentage of died cells depends on concentration
of FCS in culture and time of incubation (Fig. 6).
As we can see from Fig. 6 number of dead cells
was the biggest in culture without FCS and
increased with the time of incubation. In that time
in culture with 10 % of FCS during 48 hours of
investigation the number of dead cells wasnґt more
than 10 % and wasnґt increasing during the whole
period of incubation. For 2 % of FCS – it was
determined low level of cell death in 4 hours and
rapid increasing of this characteristic in 8 times for
the period of 24 hours of incubation. For culture
with 5 % of FCS was fixed middle level of cell
death, despite the fact that in 8, 16 and 32 hours of
incubation it was lower than for 10 % of FCS.
Conclusion. The observation has demonstrated
that CMC and FCS are important agents for gen
eration and holding multi cellular tumour sphe
roids in culture. Although MCF 7 can form
micro aggregates without CMC, it happens on
3–4 days of culturing after appearance of conflu
ent monolayer, when culture exhausts medium and
potential for exponent growth. CMC stimulates
generation of MTS in first hours and gives a pref
erence for experiments development. Our investi
gation proves essential necessity of FCS for sphe
roids culture. The optimal concentration of FCS
for cell proliferation in spheroid culture is 10 %.
Under this concentration cells form micro aggre
gates with high proliferative activity and low cell
death. In additional it has been found that concen
tration of FCS influences on intensiveness of pro
liferation as well as on cell adhesiveness to each
other and formation of microaggregates.
Л.В. Гарманчук, Е.М. Перепелицына,
М.В. Сидоренко, Л.И. Остапченко
ФОРМИРОВАНИЕ МНОГОКЛЕТОЧНЫХ
АГРЕГАТОВ В РАЗНЫХ УСЛОВИЯХ
МИКРООКРУЖЕНИЯ
Многоклеточные агрегаты (сфероиды) по сложнос
ти структуры занимают промежуточное положение
между монослойным ростом клеток и организованной
тканью. Сфероиды являются адекватной моделью трех
мерного клеточного роста и организации, межклеточ
ных контактов и влияния микроокружения на опухо
левый микроагрегат. В нашей работе продемонстриро
вано, что формирование и рост сфероидов зависит от
концентрации карбокси метил целлюлозы и фетальной
телячьей сыворотки. Условия микроокружения влияют
не только на интенсивность пролиферации, но и на
адгезивность клеток и формирование микроагрегатов.
ISSN 0564–3783. Цитология и генетика. 2010. № 128
L. Garmanchouk, O. Perepelytsina, M. Sydorenko, L.I. Ostapchenko
Fig. 5. MTS in 10 % FCS culture 48 hour
Fig. 6. Dependence of cell death on concentrations of FCS
and time of culturing

Л.В. Гарманчук, О.М. Перепелиціна,
М.В. Сидоренко, Л.І. Остапченко
ФОРМУВАННЯ БАГАТОКЛІТИННИХ АГРЕГАТІВ
ПРИ РІЗНИХ УМОВАХ МІКРООТОЧЕННЯ
Багатоклітинні агрегати (сфероїди) за складністю
структури займають проміжне місце між моношаро
вим ростом клітин та організованою тканиною. Сфе
роїди є адекватною моделлю трьохвимірного клітин
ного росту і організації, міжклітинних контактів та
впливу мікрооточення на пухлинний мікроагрегат.
У роботі продемонстровано, що формування та ріст
сфероїдів залежить від концентрації карбокси метил
целюлози та фетальної сироватки теляти. Умови мік
рооточення впливають не тільки на інтенсивність
проліферації, але й на адгезивність клітин та форму
вання мікроагрегатів.
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Received 10.12.08
Formation of multicellular aggregates under different conditions of microenvironment

FORMATION OF MULTICELLULAR AGGREGATES UNDER DIFFERENT CONDITIONS OF MICROENVIRONMENT Multicellular

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